whisturx Posted July 26, 2011 Share Posted July 26, 2011 Thought that might attract some interest !! Nothing to do with Bronco toilet paper !! Usually once or twice a trip I manage to go up /down a ramp,ford or small ferry ramp with the dreaded scrape of the spare tyre rack or recentlty I just touched my rear plastic bumper. My Frankia has not got the longest overhang but I dread the day a steeper ramp or similar could remove the rear bumper with all the damage etc. I have seen somewhere a van fitted with two "jockey wheel type " wheels fitted to the rear of the Alco chassis, which I assume would hit the road first. Also I have heard of rubber rollers doing the same thing. Has anyone seen this system or know a supplier / fitter ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted July 26, 2011 Share Posted July 26, 2011 Not a direct reply to the question as posed, so my apologies for that, Ian, but have you considered air assistance as an alternative? It is available for AlKo chassis, and would lift the tail out of harms way, rather than transferring load to the rear chassis extension. As your van has a longish rear overhang, it is very likely it drops at the rear as it is loaded, and the air assisters can be set to reinstate the unladen ground clearance, which should keep it out of trouble. My objection to the wheels/rollers, is that unless they are original equipment (some are), the rear of the chassis would be subjected to upward loads, for which it was not designed. Those loads are unpredictable, unlikely to be symmetrical, and potentially, on a severe grounding, could leave the van spanning from its front wheels to the rear rollers. I'm not suggesting anything so severe or dramatic as the rear wheels coming off the ground, :-) just that load would inevitably transfer from the rear suspension to the rollers, with the extent of the load transferring being completely a matter of chance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whisturx Posted July 26, 2011 Author Share Posted July 26, 2011 Thanks Brian for your suggestion. I have the twin rear axle 5 ton chassis and load weight is never a problem as I only carry bikes,chairs etc so when loaded the rear does not drop much. It is more to prevent the odd occasion when road ramps/dips cause a scrape. On my previous 750 Hobby the tow bar took the punishment but the Frankia has a plastic bumper which looks expensive to replace and a bit flimsy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tracker Posted July 26, 2011 Share Posted July 26, 2011 Depending upon how the rear end skirt and bumper are dsigned and fitted, would removal of the bumper and repositioning a couple of inches higher, possibly with new fabricated brackets which might be just a fraction lower than the bumper to take the brunt of any scrapes, be a possibility? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retread24800 Posted July 26, 2011 Share Posted July 26, 2011 My movera (Hymer group) catalogue gives a set of rollers @ Euro 336.00 suitable for Alko chassis The subject was also covered here out and about Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whisturx Posted July 27, 2011 Author Share Posted July 27, 2011 Thanks Tracker,but the rear bumper on my Frankia is integral with the rear lights and is 1.2 metres up the rear sides, as I have a large garage door on the back above the bumper. So no chance of alteration Thanks Retread I have found the following slightly cheaper http://www.alfred-weih.de/traeger/indrollen.html So either I will have to be more aware of slopes or see if Santa can get me a pair for Christmas !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe63xnotuse Posted July 27, 2011 Share Posted July 27, 2011 Those are interesting..I've never seen them before.(..although as the rollers are quite small,I wouldn't expect them to "roll" very much..and possibly even digging in when reversing?) If your vehicle is a similar layout to the one shown in that link,is there anyway you could protect the rear by way of fabricating a pair of sturdy angled mounts,that could carry "skid plates"(..consisting of possibly a nylon or hardwood strip?).. Or, as you say,what about a towbar ? Even if it was minus the towball and electrics.. (...although it would probably make things worse,as it would be lower than the rear panel). Having said that,other that raising the vehicle(air suspension etc) I suppose what ever you look at,it would really need to be mounted at the absolute rear and as wide as possible.Otherwise it's still going to be the bodywork ,possibly the rear corners which bottom out first,especially where severe cambers are involved. :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney123 Posted July 27, 2011 Share Posted July 27, 2011 Hi, Why dont you attempt this especially onto a ferry......... On approach to the ramp DONT go straight onto the ramp, instead as you approach the ramp drive onto the ramp at an angle, then when your rear wheels are on the ramp straighten up and you will find your rear end dosnt snag the ramp. Plus do the same on the way off the ramp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphy99 Posted July 27, 2011 Share Posted July 27, 2011 I know you whisturx and have on record a private email saying the reason you bought a Van with 5 ton chassis was to enable you to carry vast quantities of " vino collapso ".!!! So all this about just carrying table, chairs etc at least a fb.!! Are you quite sure it's the Van's bottom scraping and not your own.!! Thanks for your help today and hope to see you soon. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
euroserv Posted July 28, 2011 Share Posted July 28, 2011 Hello, I have to say that i completely agree with Brian on this one. Even if there are castors available to attach to the rear of the chassis extensions I would strongly recommend not to do this because as he says they are just not designed to cope with upward forces. Besides the risk of damage to the chassis you are most likely to notice strange things going on inside the vehicle like shower trays no longer sealed or doors no longer closing or opening. The chassis is very susceptible to bending and even on quite new vehicles I have seen evidence of this! A twisting motion can be quite subtle but also rather destructive of the inflexible fittings inside! While the bend in the chassis may not be permanent, the damage elsewhere could be. Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whisturx Posted July 29, 2011 Author Share Posted July 29, 2011 Thanks for all the advice. With the price of the rollers anyway and as my scrapes to date have been a light touch to the spare tyre rack which is the lowest point behind the rear wheels, I will not be purchasing the rollers. I would prefer to touch the rack rather than the rear bumper which would be a fortune to replace. I still would have thought by grounding the rear the upward pressure is still going to affect the chassis with or without a roller ? They would assist getting gently off the road surface without ripping out the bumper and craping the chassis ? Anyway i will try to avoid car parks with ramps and the chain link ferry at Sandbanks on a low tide !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe63xnotuse Posted July 29, 2011 Share Posted July 29, 2011 As you have points that do actually ground out(..all be it occasionally),would it be worth just looking a fixing some form of replaceable "pads/skid plates" at those points...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrs p hancox Posted July 29, 2011 Share Posted July 29, 2011 We too had trouble with our bottom!! A frequent noise was heard from behind, and although we have a tow bar fitted we were worried. We have an Elddis Autostratus 510. A lovely machine, but we found high speed bumps, steep gate openings all gave us trouble. We priced up the air suspension being done, but didn't really want to spend the money, as being on an ALKO chassis its a lot more than normal suspension and cannot be done on a DIY kit. By chance we saw the same van on E bay with whole of rear end wiped out due to argument with a ferry. The cost to repair the rear end was far greater than having the work done, so bit the bullet and had the work done! AS Suspension did the work, in May. and I cannot reccomend them enough a brill job. Clean tidy and thoughtful fitting of controls. They took care of our dog and gave us a lift to and from train station whilst the work was being done. Hubby says the handling of van is much better, we no longer have to put rear steadies down when we stop and van is steady with no bouncyness. Hubby can level van easily on hydo lifts from within van. The van is about 6 cm higher than it was prior op. and lifts about another 6 with hydo lifts. We have not grounded since, and although the cost was not cheap, neither was the van, and if it causes us ease of access, protects the van then its worth every penny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted July 29, 2011 Share Posted July 29, 2011 Air suspension's the way to go. Lifts van and you get a better ride into the bargain, it's a no brainer really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted July 29, 2011 Share Posted July 29, 2011 peter - 2011-07-29 2:14 PMAir suspension's the way to go. Lifts van and you get a better ride into the bargain, it's a no brainer really. Ditto:D....................Wish we done it years ago;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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